Best time to post on social media in the Gulf

For most days, the evening, from about 8pm to 11pm, is the strongest stretch. Working days show a smaller bump around lunch, and Saturday and Sunday, the UAE weekend, stay busy through the afternoon. Friday afternoon behaves the same way because many offices close at midday. Start testing with these slots and let your own Insights refine them.

The shape of the day is much the same, but Saudi Arabia takes Friday and Saturday off and runs an hour behind the UAE. Sunday, a quiet day in Dubai, is a working day in Riyadh. Run both markets from one schedule and one of them will always be out of step, so plan two.

Once iftar is over. The fasting hours are quiet and the working day is shorter; use rises from about 8pm, carries on late (often beyond midnight) and picks up again near suhoor. Choose Ramadan and the chart follows that pattern.

Not from any account's analytics; a general chart never could. It rests on fixed facts: time zones, working weeks, the everyday rhythm of commuting, lunch breaks and evenings, and the way Ramadan shifts all of it. Use it to start, and after three or four weeks trust your own figures more.

Less than it once did, now that feeds are ranked rather than shown in time order. But a post's first hour still shapes how far it travels, and posting while your audience is awake gives it the best start.